Biography

Early career in the Electricity Industry

Clive worked for twenty-seven years (1972-1999) in the UK electricity supply industry.  He trained and served as a mains engineer with the Yorkshire Electricity Board (YEB) until 1985 when he joined the Safety Branch of the Electricity Council.  In 1990 the industry was privatised and he moved to the new Yorkshire Electricity plc, initially in safety (where he gained an MSc in Safety and Reliability and Fellowship of the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health), and then as a manager in the metering business.  

His next move proved to be career changing.  He managed a number of change programmes, during which time he learned and became accredited to measure and manage corporate culture and leadership style.

His final appointment with Yorkshire Electricity was in Human Resources as management development advisor.  During this time he became a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

Career in Purposeful Leadership

In 2000, Clive started his own business, specialising in Purposeful Leadership, drawing on his experience in change management from the electricity industry.  In 2001, he spoke at a conference for the Confederation of British Industry where he met John Campbell, then managing director at Primeast, specialists in leadership and team development since 1987.

After leading a couple of client assignments on behalf of Primeast, Clive agreed to join the company in 2002 as managing director, allowing John to move to chairman and one step closer to retirement.  

Clive agreed a 2008 vision for Primeast with his fellow directors, which they delivered in full by September 2007.  At this point he wanted to spend more time in thought leadership, whilst still serving as a practitioner and board member.

In 2015, his first published book, "Designing the Purposeful Organization" (DPO) was written with Kogan Page.  It described, chapter by chapter, the conditions necessary for successful enterprises, as shown in the PrimeFocus framework below, which Clive first drew in the 1990s and which became a core method for Primeast.

In the final chapter of DPO, Clive speculated that the principles described in the book could be applied to global governance.  He wrote this in November 2014 and that Christmas, a colleague put a draft copy of the UN Sustainable Development Goals on his desk.  Clive was inspired and felt called to write "Designing the Purposeful World - the UN Sustainable Development Goals as a Blueprint for Humanity" (Routedge 2018). 

Clive agreed to continue a part-time role with Primeast and devoted his remaining time to the promotion of the SDGs anywhere in the world and with any audience.  Between 2015 (when the SDGs were agreed by world leaders) and 2024, he engaged thousands of people from age seven to well over seventy.  On every ocassion, he asked audiences to describe the world they'd like to see - and it was always in line with the SDGs.

In 2023, conscious that the SDGs had a time-stamp of 2030 and aware that the subject of sustainability had become somewhat fear-driven, Clive decided it was time to promote a more optimistic future.  He discussed this with Routledge and wrote "Leading Beyond Sustainability - six aspirations for a brighter future", published in September 2024.

Clive continues as a practitioner in Purposeful Leadership, sharing his inspiration at conferences, coaching purposeful leaders and facilitating leadership workshops.

Awesome clients

In the last twenty-plus years, Clive has worked with some "amazing clients".  Here are just a few:

• Forest Stewardship Council

• DLA Piper

• Southwark Council

• National Health Service (UK)

• Danfoss

• Altrad

• Poppleton & Son

• Celgene

• M+W

• Horstmann Controls

• Bupa

• British Council

• Standard Bank

• ASET, the Workplace Learning and Placement Learning Association

• Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development

• Chartered Institute of Secretaries and Administrators

• Chartered Management Institute

• Institute of Leadership and Management

• Confederation of British Industry

• Association for Talent Development (US)

Away from "work"

Clive enjoys opportunities to spend time with his wife Frances and five children.  He and Frances love to travel, walk the hills and coasts of the UK, especially in their home county of Yorkshire and in Northumberland.

As a younger man, Clive was an enthusiastic rugby player for twenty-seven years.  This is just a memory - reminded by a few war-wounds and replacement joints!  Thankfully he can still walk - and write poetry and paint.